{"id":85165,"date":"2026-09-03T09:39:11","date_gmt":"2026-09-03T09:39:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/85165\/"},"modified":"2026-09-03T09:39:11","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T09:39:11","slug":"kore-eda-hirokazus-arashi-doc-leads-prime-video-japan-originals-slate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/85165\/","title":{"rendered":"Kore-eda Hirokazu’s Arashi Doc Leads Prime Video Japan Originals Slate"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tPrime Video<\/a> is doubling its investment in Japanese original content over the next two years, according to three of the streamer\u2019s top executives, who detailed a slate led by a documentary on boy band Arashi<\/a>\u2018s reunion tour and subsequent conclusion from Kore-eda Hirokazu<\/a>, in an interview with Variety.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe are basically doubling our investment over the next two years,\u201d says Gandhi, VP, Asia Pacific, Prime Video, describing the diversity of the new slate as a reflection of Prime Video\u2019s growing customer base in Japan<\/a>. As fandom varies by genre, Gandhi says the slate has to reflect customer preferences across all of them: \u201cThat\u2019s why, if you see when we have the best of anime, unscripted, scripted, movies, sport now coming through across the board, that\u2019s quite reflected in this.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tOishi, Japan country manager, Prime Video, says Japanese subscribers now expect the service to function as a full entertainment destination rather than a home for a single genre or title. \u201cFive years ago, the customer came to our service for the single genre or specific title, but they are looking for more comprehensive entertainment destination for us,\u201d Oishi says, adding that Prime Video holds the number one position in Japan\u2019s streaming market by both user ratio and subscription base. He points to the service\u2019s channel-partner model, including add-on subscriptions and rentals bundled into a single app, as part of meeting that broader appetite.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe documentary, titled \u201c5 \u2013 Our Time as Arashi -,\u201d goes behind the scenes of the band\u2019s five-dome farewell tour, which took place roughly six years after the group\u2019s hiatus began. Kore-eda directs, with Imanaka Kohei and Sunada Mami of his Bun-Buku production collective serving as directors under him. The film streams worldwide from Dec. 15, followed by the concert film \u201cArashi Live Tour 2026 \u2018We Are Arashi -Prime Video Edition-\u2018,\u201d capturing the tour\u2019s Tokyo Dome finale from May 31, on Dec. 21. Nine archival Arashi concert titles begin streaming sequentially from Sept. 15.<\/p>\n

\n\tGandhi frames Arashi\u2019s inclusion as part of a broader push into music and cultural figures tied to Prime Video\u2019s young-adult strategy, while Oishi notes that Arashi\u2019s popularity extends well beyond young viewers to a broader audience curious about what happens behind the scenes. Gandhi adds that the young-adult push spans the service\u2019s slate worldwide, citing \u201cThe Summer I Turned Pretty,\u201d \u201cOff Campus,\u201d \u201cMaxton Hall\u201d out of Germany, the \u201cCulpa\u201d series from Spain and \u201cCall Me Bae\u201d from India as examples of a strategy built around young viewers he describes as cultural ambassadors. \u201cThis is a part of the cultural zeitgeist. This is a part about creating culture and being really part of that,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\n\tOn established IP, Gandhi describes two distinct approaches: leaning on existing fandom, and using adaptations to expand a title\u2019s footprint well beyond its original readership. He points to \u201cNippon Sangoku\u201d as an example of the latter. \u201cWe saw the fandom on the IP expand quite dramatically once we put it on the service. More books got sold, more fans came into this,\u201d he says. A second season of the anime, which ranked No. 2 on Amazon\u2019s global Top 10 Non-English Prime Original Series chart for four consecutive weeks, is also on the slate, though its launch date has not been set.<\/p>\n

\n\tBuddy Marini, head of Amazon MGM Studios, Japan, says the strategy also depends on Japan\u2019s depth of source material beyond its best-known franchises. \u201cJapan just has a treasure trove of IP, a long history of creating everything from books to manga to anime and live action,\u201d he says. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of smaller IP that if there\u2019s a good reason to make it bigger, that\u2019s something that we would look at as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSeveral of those adaptations make up the bulk of the current scripted slate. \u201cBless,\u201d based on Sonoyama Yukino\u2019s manga serialized in Monthly Shonen Sirius, stars Onishi Ryusei as a young man pursuing a career as a makeup artist, with Shiseido\u2019s Shindo Ikuko supervising the series\u2019 makeup work; it launches in spring 2027. \u201cRock, Paper, Landmine,\u201d adapted from Aosaki Yugo\u2019s novel \u201cLandmine Glico,\u201d which swept Japan\u2019s four major mystery rankings and collected nine literary prizes including a rare triple crown, stars Mori Nana and Makita Aju and premieres Nov. 13. \u201cPlease Save My Earth,\u201d director Miki Takahiro\u2019s take on Hiwatari Saki\u2019s reincarnation-themed sci-fi manga, which has sold more than 16 million copies since 1986, stars Hirose Alice and arrives in autumn 2027. And \u201cThe Apothecary Diaries,\u201d a co-production with Toho based on Hyuganatsu\u2019s light novel series, which has sold more than 57 million copies in 16 languages, stars Ashida Mana and is set for 2028.<\/p>\n

\n\tAsked about Prime Video Japan\u2019s growth strategy, both Gandhi and Oishi single out original live-action series as the priority. \u201cThe most important part is the original. We see the big opportunity here. We decided to doubling down of the investment of the original contents in the next two years, which is the most important part of our strategy,\u201d Oishi says, naming \u201cBless,\u201d \u201cJirai Glico\u201d \u2013 the Japanese title behind \u201cRock, Paper, Landmine\u201d \u2013 and \u201cPlease Be My First Love\u201d as the young-adult-focused new IP driving that push. Gandhi describes the growth plan as resting on two additional pillars beyond originals: an \u201centertainment hub\u201d built around the Prime membership program, channel partnerships, transactional video-on-demand and pay-per-view, and what he calls a \u201csuper-serving strategy\u201d of going deep on individual genres through third-party partners, citing dAnime and Anime Times in Japan and Crunchyroll internationally as examples. \u201cWe think about this as entertaining fandom of any particular genre super deeply,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\n\tMarini says the Toho partnership reflects Amazon\u2019s roots as a books company and the relationships that history affords with publishers and source-material rights holders. \u201cWe\u2019re uniquely placed to have great relationships with a lot of different types of players, from film studios to publishers to creators,\u201d he says. He traces that flexibility back to Amazon MGM Studios\u2019 earlier work with Toho on \u201cThe Silent Service,\u201d whose first two seasons paired a theatrical release with a streaming run; the third season, subtitled \u201cAwaken, New York\u201d and made with cooperation from the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, streams as a series only, without a theatrical release, beginning summer 2027. Gandhi adds that beyond creative partnership and global reach, Amazon\u2019s wider retail ecosystem gives creators a third advantage unavailable elsewhere, pointing to cases where a title\u2019s success on Prime Video has translated into higher book and merchandise sales.<\/p>\n

\n\tMarini also cites \u201cSuper Mob Ninja,\u201d an original action comedy marking the large-scale directorial debut of Sakamoto Yugo and starring Yamada Yuki and Yamada Anna, as an example of the studio backing new directing talent. \u201cWe really feel that Sakamoto-san has a really great sense and a story here that not only it will find an audience in Japan, but has the potential also to travel globally,\u201d Marini says.<\/p>\n

\n\tOn the unscripted side, Marini traces \u201cPlease Be My First Love,\u201d a dating format built around young Japanese people who have never had a romantic relationship, back through Prime Video Japan\u2019s earlier unscripted formats. The service built a base with \u201cThe Bachelor\u201d and \u201cThe Bachelorette,\u201d then licensed the Korean format \u201cLove Transit,\u201d before developing \u201cPlease Be My First Love\u201d as a wholly original Amazon format. \u201cHaving that base of formats and then creating our own, I think that\u2019s something that we\u2019re looking to expand on as well,\u201d he says. The series launches in July 2027.<\/p>\n

\n\tOn anime, Oishi says Prime Video accounts for 47% of all streaming anime hours in Japan, with titles including \u201cGhost in the Shell,\u201d \u201cNippon Sangoku\u201d and \u201cOld Country Bumpkin\u201d driving that share. He points to the anime \u201cGundam G-Quax\u201d as an example of how that reach translates into commerce: Prime Video secured exclusive streaming rights one to two days ahead of other platforms, and customers browsing the title\u2019s detail page could buy Gundam figures directly. \u201cThis type of the experience we can provide. This is of benefit for the customer as well as the partners,\u201d Oishi says. Gandhi says the strategy extends beyond Japan\u2019s borders too: the unscripted format \u201cLOL\u201d originated in the country and has since been remade locally in more than 25 countries. \u201cThere\u2019s a ton of opportunity of creating new IP here and then taking that around the world,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\n\tSports remains the third pillar of the country strategy, according to Oishi, who cites Prime Video\u2019s existing rights to MLB, NBA and live boxing coverage in Japan. Asked how Prime Video differentiates itself as Netflix and Disney+ increase their Japan investment and HBO Max strikes carriage deals of its own in the market, Oishi points back to Prime Video\u2019s market position and its focus on content and customers over competitors. \u201cWe really focus on the content and the customer. That\u2019s the only thing we really focus on that,\u201d he says. Gandhi adds that the service\u2019s network of more than 70 third-party channel partners in Japan, which now includes HBO Max, is itself a point of differentiation. \u201cWe have 70-plus partners there. So I think we\u2019re uniquely placed in that area,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Prime Video is doubling its investment in Japanese original content over the next two years, according to three…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":85166,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[54219,8,8956,33,2443],"class_list":["post-85165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-japan","tag-arashi","tag-japan","tag-kore-eda-hirokazu","tag-nihon","tag-prime-video"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=85165"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85165\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/85166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=85165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=85165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}